Crazy Little Thing Called Love
by Follow-ur-Shadow
Summary: After Faye's reign of terror ends a new player steps in, winning over everyone except Harvey who lets jealousy get the better of him.


**Crazy Little Thing Called Love**

**Category: **Romance/Darvey established

**Summary: **After Faye's reign of terror ends a new player steps in, winning over everyone except Harvey who lets jealousy get the better of him.

**AN:** This is based of a prompt I received from krystalsteph; _'A new senior partner takes an interest in Donna it drives Harvey crazy.' _Also the pixels on my laptop have decided to quit on life, so apologies in advance for any mistakes I may have missed :P

* * *

Harvey takes an immediate dislike to Maxwell 'Mac' Doherty, Faye Richardson's six foot replacement- who obviously spends too long staring in the mirror each morning.

Impeccable hair isn't a qualification and Harvey distrusts him even more when the suave adviser insists his role will be nothing like Faye's, that he's there to help keep them on the straight and narrow not hand out disciplinaries or examine how they work.

Horse shit.

Doherty was sent by the board which means as far as he's concerned the man's word isn't worth the air he's trying to sell it with. They're being manipulated good cop/bad cop style but Louis is won over in the first five minutes by some 'waxing lyrical' speech about honour and respect.

He isn't surprised.

Louis would roll-over for a tin of biscuits if it came singing praises but what does piss him of is that the others fall like goddamn domino's taking the bait and lapping it up. He knows better; a wolf in sheep's clothing doesn't maul a flock in broad daylight, it steals the vulnerable during the night so not to arouse suspicion.

Still, he keeps his reservations guarded.. largely because Donna tempers his paranoia. She errs on the side of caution with him because a few weeks are nothing compared to thirteen years of loyalty but even she starts to bend, eventually doing her _Donna_ thing on him and suggesting he try to be more accommodating.

That opens up the gates to a whole new kind of personal hell.

As an 'adviser' Doherty is continually seeking her out, her role _pivotal_ to his understanding of how things work or so the smug bastard claims. If he didn't hate the man before his jealousy steers the emotion more towards actual loathing, worse, when the pair start having lunches together.

He assures her it's fine, it doesn't bother him, but the truth crawls beneath his skin like an unseen rash and the feeling gets worse the longer he bottles it up. Fake smiles and forced platitudes are easy to sell given he's been ushering them out in court for over a decade but Donna's harder to convince.

He goes home with her every night but ironically that's what becomes his antidote. Once they cross the threshold into his condo work and Mac Doherty get left behind and he's almost able to forget he spends most days going crazy in his own skin. If anything he becomes more attentive in the privacy of their home, his thoughts and fears, hopes and goals escaping in soft tender touches that ride them through the nights.

He's so far gone in the momentum he doesn't really notice the transition to Winter.

The weeks slowly creep up and he forgets about the double life he's leading, leaning on his trust in Donna until he reaches a point where his fake pleasantries toward Doherty almost become sincere. The man might be a wolf but his loyalty is starting to show ZSLWW aren't the sheep, they're the pack.

It's what he genuinely starts to believe and what plunges a sickening sense of betrayal through his chest not two days after he's assimilated with the thought.

The sight of Doherty with his arms wrapped intimately around Donna makes him see red before reason, his vision swimming as his feet stumble to get closer to the viscous reality.

"_Harvey..."_

Mac glances up, only half paying attention to the approach as his grip tightens around the redhead, "you want to tell your girl here she should be wearing snow boots, not stilettos."

The casualness of the comment stops him, his eyes struggling to focus as they draw to the blood trickling at her knee.

When he finds her gaze she's wearing a flushed smile and he chokes on his own embarrassment, pushing it down to voice his concern. "What happened?"

"I tripped..." she admits sheepishly, grimacing as Mac hops her forward, "but if anyone else asks I'm expecting one of you to come up with a better story."

Her humour doesn't ease his guilt but it does usher him forward. He might have misread the situation but their bodes are still too closely entwined for his liking and he tries not to scowl as he hands slip in to take over. "I've got her."

Mac doesn't argue sensing the man's unease and stepping back, relieving himself of the duty. It's been a hell of a long road to get where they are and Harvey's jealousy aside, if Donna Paulsen was _his _girlfriend, he can't say he wouldn't act a little crazy at times as well. "I think it's just wrenched but you should put some ice on it."

Donna relaxes, scrunching Harvey's jacket and letting him take her weight. It's a relief, the pain ebbing slightly as his arm hitches her up in a more supportive hold. She doesn't mind leaning on him, feels more comfortable, but still tries to smooth over any residual awkwardness. "For the record snow boots are for resort's only."

Mac grins, raising his hands in surrender. "Alright, Peggy Fleming-" he jokes, risking a glance at Harvey who looks less than impressed with the comment. It's definitely his cue to leave, if it wasn't time already, and he bows out pointing at her knee. "Don't forget, _ice_."

She smiles, her eyes falling back to Harvey but his tight expression makes her hesitate. He's obviously worried but there's more going on there and she opens her mouth, swallowing a surprised sound when he hoists her up into his arms. It catches her off guard and really isn't necessary, given the few steps it would take to his office, and a small smirk flitters over her concern. "I _can_ walk."

Not from what he saw. It's the first thought that pops into his head and despite every instinct warning him not to voice it the words fall out beneath a grumble.

It's barely audible but she still hears the comment, waiting to acknowledge it until he has her seated on the couch and she laces her fingers through his stopping him from leaving. "Hey, are _you_ okay?"

He stalls, still hot under the collar and pulls his sweaty palm back with a shrug. "I should get an ice pack."

"_Harvey_."

Her voice, almost akin to an order stops him, and he squeezes his eyes shut, facing his desk and wishing he knew how to explain it. He's being ridiculous... and maybe if he hadn't let the feeling stretch out over so many weeks he'd be able to reign himself in with more control but but he can't. What he thought he saw coupled with actually seeing her hurt tightens in his chest and any half-assed lie would fall short of being convincing. "He was all over you and I _thought-_"

The admission catches, and she breathes out a sigh. "Good." The deliberate ambiguity draws his attention, his shoulders angling towards her and she softens her gaze with a light smile. "I'm glad you're finally ready to talk about it."

He flinches, the only way he could be any more mortified if she'd actually said the word _jealous_ out-loud. "You knew?"

Her head slants to the side in a gentle dress-down because of _course_ she knew. Not once in the last thirteen years has she ever believed the 'it doesn't bother me' line and it's been even clearer to read since they got together... but when he didn't bring it up she assumed he was working through it; now, she isn't so sure. "What I don't know is why you didn't talk to me about it."

He slides his hands into his pockets, blowing out a breath, nervous, because the more he admits the more foolish he feels but he's in this now and, like it or not, doesn't have much of a choice. "I didn't want you to think I don't trust you."

She ducks her gaze away from him, and he swears he hears her laugh, making him instantly defensive. "What?"

She steels herself, a little more serious as she glances up again. "Harvey, we've spent over a decade building this... if there's one thing we have, it's trust."

The assurance corroborates the thing that's kept him sane and he nods, his anxiety swept up in a wave of relief. He'd never intended having this conversation with her and now they are, he's wishing they'd had it sooner. "So you're not mad?"

"That you care enough to be jealous, no Harvey I'm not mad." And she isn't. He wasn't controlling or possessive, maybe a bit of a jerk at times, but to anyone else there could have been a hundred reasons to explain it away. If anything she's concerned, sensing there's more to it than he's even aware of. "Maybe you need to ask why he got under your skin?"

The soft nudge is exactly that, leaving the ball in his court and it's one of those times he has a love/hate relationship with how well she knows him. If it had been anyone other than Mac Doherty he wouldn't have battered an eyelid but the man's put-togetherness, his likeableness had been a feather ruffler from the start and at a junction when his own career had been hanging by a thread.

"Mike told me I lost myself."

It's the first time he's made the confession out-loud and he swallows it, slipping a hand from his pocket to scrub his jaw. In the last sixth months he's given up clients, had his reputation subjected to scrutiny, his work dictated by tyranny and he doesn't even have a managing partner's title to show for it. Compared to someone like Doherty he's flat-lining and to hear those words from Mike Ross, he hadn't realised just how much it had affected him until right now. "What if he's right?"

The self-doubt is more clear than anything else he's been grappling with and if she could stand, she would, but he doesn't move closer and she hopes the truth will comfort him instead. "Mike was doing exactly what you taught him, rattling the cage because he learnt from the best."

He glances down, a hesitant frown twitching his lips and she knows why he's struggling. For the better part of his life he's had one focus, one drive that's seen him climb from one rung to the next but the first time his career isn't everything, and it's completely understandable he's going through an adjustment phase.

"You're not lost Harvey." She smiles gently, hoping he'll come to see what she does. "Some of your priorities may have shifted but there's nothing wrong with taking some time to figure out what you want... and whatever that is, I'm here to help you fight for it."

There's nothing but conviction in her expression and he relaxes again, his relief finding a foothold as appreciation builds in his throat. He has no idea how in the hell he got so lucky, not only to have her but to her support, and he's stuck trying to find the words when Gretchen's voice floats in from the door.

"I was told you got hurt saving a bus-load of children."

Gretchen winks at the redhead, a smirk playing on her mouth as she ushers in a first-aid kit along with an ice pack. "Good thing this one wasn't there-" she gestures the box at Harvey with a shake of her head, "they'd all still be waiting."

He rolls his eyes, finding his pocket again, but honestly he's grateful for the interruption. It cements that the entire firm is a family, what he's been working towards and if he's being honest, he would never have lived down having to ask where they kept the medical supplies.

"Thank you Gretchen." Donna smiles warmly at her, the twinge in her knee more of a nuisance than anything but her cheeks still flush as the women regards Harvey with a firm tut.

"You're in charge, we need her in _one_ piece Hawkeye."

He nods, not altogether offended by the comparison and amusement works its way into his grumble, "believe me... I know."

Donna bites the inside of her cheek as the women leaves them be, watching Harvey move to first-aid kit, his fingers clumsily fumbling open the lid as he kneels beside her. She'd rather not make a fuss but senses there's no point arguing and slides off her heels with a wince, his gentle touch under her calf urging her gaze to his.

"I should have talked to you." He swallows the almost apology, fidgeting with the antiseptic packet he dug out. "I was an idiot."

"True..." she doesn't miss a beat, resting back against the couch and lolling her head down at him with a teasing smirk, "but you were being _my_ idiot."

He huffs a chuckle, tearing the paper and trying to be gentle as he swabs around knee. The bruising has come up worse since she's been inside, her tight features showing her discomfort, and he sacrifices his humility in an effort to distract her. "You knew this whole time... and didn't say anything."

She's quiet for a moment, studying him, knowing he'd rather be uncomfortable for a few more minutes than let her fixate on the pain but the gesture doesn't stop her from giving him an honest truth. "Sometimes people need to figure things out for themselves first, otherwise they don't listen."

It takes a second for his reluctant smile to break through and she sits up a little straighter, her eyes growing slightly more serious as she takes the wipe from his hand. "Just in case you need me to say it, you have nothing to worry about with Mac. You know i would _never_-

"I know."

He stops her before she can finish and the conviction in his gaze making her gleam playfully, "though they do say the more the merrier?"

"_Donna_." He tries to warn her off but her light pull dissolves the last of his reservations, and he pushes up reaching for the ice pack when he feels a loose pull at his cuff.

"_Hey..._" she tugs him back, urging him down onto the couch beside her, " I love you, got that?"

He does and lowers himself, leaning in to brush her lips. They have a rule about showing affection at work but he ignores it, breaking the kiss and cupping her cheek with a sigh, "I love you too... so how about you stop trying to put me in an early grave?"

Her brows dip in confusion, clearly not understanding his worry, and he pushes the hair from her face letting his concern wash to the surface. "You sure you're okay?

The protective note is more obvious the second time around and she claps his fingers, hooking an eyebrow up at him, "positive... but if you wanted to take me home and do a more thorough inspection I wouldn't so no."

He doesn't need any more convincing to rearrange his afternoon and gives her hand a light squeeze in response. "Half an hour, then I'm all yours." He kisses her again, the gesture too quick, but it's enough incentive to move him.

And somewhere between rescheduling a call and ushering her out he realises she's right; he can still have everything but that doesn't mean what it used to. He wants friends above colleagues, trust above egos, and he wants his family- the women he loves, to know she comes first above everything else.

Because he isn't the same man he was but he's goddamn proud of who he's becoming.


End file.
